Nigeria’s new National Digital Numeric Postcode System recorded about 99.8% accuracy on its launch day, with the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) working to resolve cases of missing buildings and other mapping errors.
The Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer of NIPOST, Tola Odeyemi, disclosed this on Friday during an appearance on TVC Breakfast News, where she was joined by the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, to discuss the new system.
Odeyemi said the platform received about 987,000 postcode requests on its first day, but 1,728 users could not find their buildings on the system.
She explained that most complaints involved buildings missing from the underlying mapping data, which was based on a 2022 dataset and did not capture some newer developments.
“We know that there’s no system that’s perfect,” she said, adding that NIPOST had activated geographic information system (GIS) laboratories across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to help users resolve issues and update the database.
Similar read: Nigeria’s new digital postcode isn’t NIPOST’s first addressing fix. What happened to the others?
According to Odeyemi, users can raise a ticket on the platform when they cannot find their postcode. While the initial resolution timeline was 48 to 72 hours, she said the service had improved to a four-hour turnaround as teams worked to address complaints.
Digital postcodes to support businesses and emergency services
Tijani said the system is intended to address long-standing difficulties in locating homes and businesses, which increase costs for delivery companies and other businesses.
“People make fun of it, but we don’t think of the cost to small businesses,” the minister said, recalling how delivery riders often struggled to find customers’ addresses, leading to delays, returned orders and additional expenses.
He said a reliable addressing system could also improve emergency services, including the delivery of blood and other medical supplies, while helping government agencies plan infrastructure and public services more effectively.
Tijani also distinguished the postcode system from navigation applications such as Google Maps, explaining that the new platform provides a national addressing infrastructure rather than simply helping people navigate to locations.
NIPOST said it mapped about 49 million buildings across Nigeria using data from the National Population Commission, satellite imagery and information from other government agencies.
Users who cannot find their postcodes can request one through the platform, allowing missing codes to be generated and added to the database. Odeyemi also said NIPOST plans to help residents who cannot access the digital platform through local post offices.
The system is expected to support deliveries, e-commerce, emergency response, and government planning by giving locations more precise digital addresses.
Read also: Nigeria launches 11-character NIPOST digital postcodes
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